The crown of white fire above Carwyn’s head turned black.
Evelina took a step forward and Daimon grabbed her elbow. Carwyn’s eyes were wide with fear, reaching her arms out as if she couldn’t see. Her limbs stiffened and then relaxed entirely. She dropped to the ground, her body landing in a heap. Senna gasped and crouched down, disappearing with the crowd blocking Evelina’s view.
Evelina twisted out of Daimon’s grasp and ran to her sister, pushing the crowd aside. By the time she made it to Carwyn, people had already started backing away from her, whispering cries of a cursed omen. Evelina skidded to a halt, finding her sister’s normally olive skin pale and lifeless. She leaned down, ready to scoop her up and take her away to figure out what was going on.
“What happened?” she begged Senna. “Why is she like this?”
“A false queen,” a voice murmured from the crowd, striking dread into Evelina’s heart.
Senna ignored their words, trying to lift Carwyn by her shoulders. He motioned for Evelina to help when, without warning, she doubled over, gasping.
“Eve?” Daimon rushed to her side, rubbing her back to soothe her.
“Something’s not?—”
A blinding pain shot through her, causing her back to arch and her vision to blur. She screamed, falling into Daimon’s arms before hitting the ground. She heard her name being screamed by so many people, but she couldn’t make her mouth move to respond.
Another shock of pain shot through her, making her body go rigid and her vision go black entirely. Once the next wave hit, she felt like she was floating, no longer confined to a body held down by gravity.
Sixty
Evelina
“Open your eyes, my darling.”A delicate voice filled Evelina’s empty mind.
Her eyes snapped open. She wasn’t at the lux anymore, no longer in Daimon’s arms.
She gasped, her lungs filling with air as she took in her new surroundings. The night sky twinkled above her, illuminating the hill on which she stood. Tall grass danced in a small breeze, tickling her ankles.
She stood on a hill that overlooked acres and acres of land below. It felt as if she could see the entire empire from this spot, perched like a bird on the tallest tree. She could see the peaks of the Zenovia Mountains in the distance, the moon mirrored onto the Andronicus Sea at its farthest edge.
How did I get here?she mused.
“Evelina.”
She spun around, coming face to face with the last person she expected to see.
Her mother smiled at her, her skin glowing, a soft smile on her mouth. “I must say, I’m surprised to see you here.”
Her mother stood before her, clothed in moonlight, wearing a shimmering, pale blue dress that flowed downto the grass and sparkled with her every movement. She was the picture of perfect health, her skin vibrant and no longer sweaty and pale. Her hair had a shiny luster, her eyes bright as she smiled at Evelina.
Evelina had a million questions. But she didn’t say anything, because she really didn’t care to get any answers at this point. All she needed to know was that her mother was back to being herself. She threw her arms around Embry, basking in the gentle touch of her mother.
Embry was quiet, stroking Evelina’s hair as they held each other. With every passing breath came the realization of where she had just been. Evelina pulled back abruptly, her thoughts catching up with her.
“I was at the lux,” Evelina said softly, noting her mother’s smile dimming. “Carwyn had just been chosen by the crown.”
She spun around, looking harder at her surroundings in an attempt to find something she recognized. The hill was foreign—even the stars above weren’t constellations she recognized.
“Evelina,” her mother said softly.
Evelina twisted around again, her breath quickening.
Her mother reached out and placed a steady hand on her trembling shoulder. “Evelina, look at me.”
“Are we dead?” Evelina blurted out. “Is this Caelum?”
She remembered being at the lux when the pain hit. There wasn’t time to find out what had caused the pain—it all had happened so fast. And now she was here…with her mother.
